What is the benefit of PDC controlling the camera vs reverse?

You can trigger it using the PDC button on the front console manually if you like. And the camera stays active until you are going over 15mph (I think) or until you manually turn it off using the PDC button. Keeps it very factory option feeling.

Are you saying that is the default behavior for BMWs that already have camera option from factory?

No, I don't know if the e53 ever came with a reverse cam... maybe someone else can chime in.

I was saying that it "feels" more factory to have the factory PDC system control the camera operation. That is just personal opinion though.

What happens when the front bumper PDC detects something during frontal maneuver, does the camera come on with the PDC display overlaid? That might be a good thing since with reverse light trigger setup only the PDC beeps would occur during frontal maneuver, right?

The camera is on anytime the PDC is on. So it will show you the rear image regardless of whether or not you are moving forwards or backwards. So for example, when you start the car and put it in reverse the PDC turns on (which turns on the camera). So you back out of your spot and put it in drive. PDC stays active until you go over 15 or 20mph I forget which... so your screen will stay active as well until you reach that speed.

Now that I re-read you question though... I think you are asking what happens if you never put it into reverse and are trying to pull up to something close. In that case you have to manually switch on the PDC (which turns on the camera) so that the sensors are active. The PDC does not automatically activate under any circumstance except putting the truck into reverse. Unless there is some kind of coding I am unaware of anyway.

The reason I like this better than the reverse trigger is because you can manually turn on PDC (and thus the back-up camera) anytime without having to put the car into reverse. I have found this useful on many occasions including seeing how close someone is to me at stop lights, following in traffic <20mph, and just to see what is behind me in parking lots for situational awareness.

Hope that helps... LOL keep asking if I am not answering what you are asking though. :D

[QUOTE=crystalworks;1036483]..So you back out of your spot and put it in drive. PDC stays active until you go over 15 or 20mph I forget which... so your screen will stay active as well until you reach that speed...[/QUOTE]

Thank you for taking the time to answer my queries, yes very helpful. I'm really debating if I should just use reverse light trigger. Regarding the above, the music will stay off when screen is active, yes?

[QUOTE=X5only;1036487]No problem. Happy to help.

It stays severely muted. Not off, but pretty darn close. So, I do find myself manually turning it off after backing out regularly. Doesn't bug me, but I could see how it would bother some.

As with most things in life... there are pluses and minuses to both setups (PDC vs reverse trigger). Choose whichever works best for you and go that route. :thumbup:

So it has been a few months. What are your thoughts?

The wife and I love it. So much so that it has affected our vehicle purchasing decisions in that we are really only considering purchasing an e46, e39, or another e53 so that we can put one in her vehicle too. We got her an e83 before and I think they make a version of the Avin for that, but it's not nearly as well integrated so we are looking at one of the other chassis. We've also switched cell carriers (from Sprint to T-Mobile) for better 4G so that we have better wifi tethering to the Avin.

I have gotten so used to having it now with Pandora, Gmaps, youtube, and other android apps that I don't think I could ever go back to a non-android head unit unless it was supremely executed with a very specific set of built in apps. The last few firmware updates have made the unit even more aesthetically pleasing for me with BMW boot logos and different skins/wallpapers. The home UI was also changed and looks better/smoother.

I'll update post #3 in the near future with a full update/review and possibly even a video if I can find the time.

Edit: In the interest of full disclosure, we did have our original unit fail on us by locking the wifi out. Don't know if it was software or hardware related but Tommy took care of it quickly and sent us a new unit. The new unit is physically different and was probably revised hardware wise and software wise. I would expect that all the units being purchased now are the new revised versions.